I. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates generally to hold down or anchoring devices and, more particularly to such a device for use with a mobile home.
II. Description of the Prior Art
Due to their low cost and maximum land space utilization, modular housing has become increasingly popular in our society. Such modular housing is commonly called a mobile home even though such homes are usually transported by a towing truck and semipermanently mounted upon a base at a chosen location. Such mobile homes are oftentimes never again transported except for their original installation.
Despite the relative permanence of a typical mobile home installation, the support for the home is oftentimes make-shift and inadequate. Moreover, since the weight of a typical mobile home is considerably less than that of a conventional dwelling, merely resting the mobile home on jacks or blocks, as is the usual case, does not produce the degree of support or stability to adequately ensure against the mobile home shifting on its base due to normal vibration and/or wind forces.
In order to stabilize these previously known mobile homes on their bases there have been a number of previously known anchoring devices which engage the underframe of the mobile home and secure it to the mobile home base. These previously known mobile home anchors typically comprise a clamp member which is secured to the mobile home underframe and one end of an elongated chain is connected to the clamp member.
An eyebolt is then secured to the other end of the chain and the eyebolt threadably engages one end of a turnbuckle. Likewise, a second eyebolt threadably engages the other end of the turnbuckle and this second eyebolt is interlocked with a third eyebolt. Finally, the third eyebolt is screwed into a suitable threaded fastener secured to or embedded in the mobile home base in order to secure the anchor to the base. Rotation of the turnbuckle, of course, tensions the chain and effectively secures the mobile home to its base.
It has been the practice with the previously known mobile home anchors of this type to weld the open end of the first eyebolt to its shank after its attachment with the chain and to likewise weld the open ends of the second and third eyebolts to their respective shanks after their attachment together. It is necessary to weld the eyebolts closed in this fashion in order to prevent the loops of the eyebolts from stretching apart when the mobile home anchor is subjected to great wind and/or vibration stresses and forces. Such great stresses and forces, however, are often imposed upon the mobile home anchor during high wind storms due to the large surface area of the mobile home.
While welding the open loops of the eyebolts closed has proven effective in operation and use of the mobile home anchor, these welding operations are very expensive to accomplish. For example, in practice the cost of welding the three loops of the eyebolt closed constitutes over fifty (50%) percent of the total manufacturing price of the mobile home anchor.